The Saintess was rare, but she wasn’t the only one.
The first recognized Saintess was Lily, who has possessed me for five years now.
I awakened the holiness within me and was acknowledged as a Saintess by the Holy Palace.
Being ‘recognized’ by a specific group means that I’m not the only one capable of being one.
Even though I became a Saintess, there was already the original Saintess who had made a name for herself in the world, and around the same time as me, there were about three more Saintesses.
The reason there could be as many as five Saintesses wasn’t because they were great or came down as saviors to save pitiful humanity.
It all started with an experiment on a mutated Celestial Race.
Revelatio, one of the upper Celestials.
This Celestial, also known as the Angel of Revelation, appeared in the dreams of a human she fancied and bestowed her powers upon them like a god.
Celestials treat humans like pebbles on the roadside. They can be pushed aside anytime if they annoy them, but Revelatio was different.
The fact that she saw ‘something’ with her time-related ability called ‘Revelation’.
Uncharacteristically for a Celestial, she showed interest in the Demon Race’s ‘cross-species experiments’.
These two reasons led Revelatio to give birth to the concept of the ‘Saintess’ for the first time.
Not a ‘Corrupted One’ from a prank with specks of magic by the Demon Race, but a ‘Saintess’ reborn directly by receiving holiness from the Celestial Race.
However.
I did not become a Saintess by being recognized by Revelatio.
A disgrace to Celestials.
A line of blood that should neither rise nor exist.
‘Mixed blood of Celestials and humans.’
I didn’t need any such recognition; I already possessed holiness and had abilities and a body entirely different from the existing Saintesses.
While the Saintesses blessed with the power of ‘Revelation’ stepped back and used holy magic or ranged attacks according to their powers,
‘I just smashed with a hammer.’
Maybe that’s why the Saintesses looked down on me.
After quitting being a Saintess, I was even labeled as a witch.
“Saintess… huh.”
Light covers the snowy mountains.
A breathtaking brilliance at a glance.
As the Glasses Saintess’s hand, filled with pure white light, moved, the light poured over me like flowing water.
I flicked my hand after waking the Mage.
A massive hammer that fit perfectly in my grip.
What is needed to block an attack without a form?
Some might say to cancel it out with the same attack.
Others might say it should be unraveled with magical spells.
But both are wrong.
Pathetically…
“…!”
The reason I can’t resolve it with strength is that I lack strength.
If it’s something that can’t be solved with power, it’s because there’s not enough power.
He doesn’t really like that saying, but strong power doesn’t require much technique.
The hammer smashes the light into pieces like shattered glass.
After grabbing a few of those pieces, I sent them back as they were.
Squeak. Blood flowed from the Glasses Saintess’s cheek, but it quickly healed at a fast pace.
‘Is this the extent of her recovery ability…’
Then.
Kiiiiiing…
“Huh…?”
I put away the hammer and pulled out a spear this time.
As the spear spun, dozens of spear roars erupted into the air and rushed towards the snowy mountain.
An attack without a specific target.
As the roars tore apart every direction, the Glasses Saintess’s eyes widened behind her glasses.
She murmured softly.
“Go, God.”
‘Light’ descended upon the earth.
A pure white pillar of light enveloped the Glasses Saintess’s body.
The roars tried desperately to tear through the light pillar but ultimately failed, resulting in both the roars and the descent calming down.
Looking a bit more confident about having blocked it, she broke into a gloomy smile again.
However, I, who was fiddling with the spear for a moment, let out a small sigh.
“Is she really a saintess?”
“Heh…? Wh-what are you talking about?”
“Neither the power of Revelatio nor do I even know if it can be called holy.”
Holy power is pathetic, but in terms of sheer power, nothing in this world can match it.
It’s the power that gives life to everything and at the same time, it’s the power that kills everything.
But that light the Glasses Saintess possesses didn’t feel holy.
“But there is at least a weak bit of it. If it’s neither inherited power nor bloodline… is she using the ‘leftovers’?”
“Leftovers?”
“Yeah, leftovers.”
In an instant, the Glasses Saintess, who had been showing a silly demeanor while wearing a gloomy smile, had her expression crumple rapidly.
A rough killing intent burst forth from her body.
It’s a natural result after insulting the God she just mentioned, but it’s also true that they were just leftovers.
While celestial beings usually don’t, demon races often leave their power scattered in the world, not bothering to collect it.
The leftover power tends to kill most living beings, but a tiny fraction survives even when exposed to that power.
If that saintess was made from something that was found in the empire from the celestial beings…
‘It’s a story with enough possibilities.’
“Ha, haha. Leftovers, huh…”
Shaking her head side to side, the Glasses Saintess relaxed her expression again.
The pieces scattered across the snowy field began to merge back into her staff.
Grasping the white staff in her hand, the saintess drove it into the ground.
The snowy mountain shook.
It wasn’t because of the Glasses Saintess’s ability.
Kroooooh!
‘Sugarado.’
“U-uwu…”
The Sugarado on the snowy mountain is waking up.
“C-come on, let’s make it more fun…”
BOOM!!!
■
The Breath of Sugarado erupts, engulfing both the Glasses Saintess.
Blocking it isn’t difficult, but the problem is the Hatchling Sugarado.
‘Not now.’
The soul transfer is already in progress.
If I get exposed to the Hatchling Sugarado’s Breath during this process, it could get really complicated.
“Ugh?”
“Just stay inside for now.”
I throw the Mage out of the snowy mountain with physical teleportation and stuff Sugarado into the Space.
It’s a bit of a boring Space, but better than both being in danger.
KABOOM!!!
An explosion of snow occurs.
Sharp magical power pierces through the Holy Protection.
Using the spear to twist the flow of magic, I step far outside the attack range and glance toward the Glasses Saintess.
Wrapped in a brilliant shield of seven colors, the Glasses Saintess.
Not stopping there, she’s also surrounded by numerous buffs and defense techniques, but what catches my eye is the initial protective shield.
‘…Leo?’
Is she using Leo’s abilities?
Or did she receive something from Leo?
Since Leo is on the Empire’s side, it wouldn’t be strange for her, the Saintess of the Empire, to have such a capability.
Still, if she can withstand the Breath right in front of her, the abilities of this Glasses Saintess are no joke.
KOOO…
Seeing two entities still intact after releasing the Breath fuels Sugarado’s fury.
SHHHHH…
The already low temperature drops even further.
An extreme cold that freezes Everything turns the snowy mountain into an Ice Age, and fierce snowstorms begin to rise the altitude of the mountain.
Meanwhile, an unbelievable power rises on the Glasses Saintess’s side…
“…?”
Then, it subsides.
Creak.
She looks disgruntled, becoming increasingly transparent as if about to vanish.
“It’s a pity… I need to make you pay for daring to insult a god.”
That it must end like this.
CRACKLE!
A cylinder spins behind her.
A magical ritual unfolds, and a massive power reaches out through the tiniest crack.
Something that even I flinch at now.
So it became even more certain.
CLINK.
“I’ll come for you soon.”
“Really…”
Whoosh!
The pure white spear strikes the empty robe directly.
However, it was literally a spear that struck only the ‘empty’ robe.
All that remains are bits of white robe scattered like cotton and an enraged Sugarado.
The Glasses Saintess had long since disappeared, taken away by the immense power that had revealed itself.
The enormous power that had been revealed had long since been summoned.
“… It seems it wasn’t just the leftovers.”
I must definitely go to the Empire.
Glitter.
Kroooo!!
‘I should look into this a bit more…’
■
Somewhere underground in the Golden Empire, the Imperium.
No matter where you go, the central shrine is filled with treasures, jewels, and gold, and within it, the Golden Holy was enclosed, where a life descended.
In its raw form, without a single piece of clothing.
The naked Glasses Saintess, Nea, was dressed by the maid who was waiting nearby, seemingly accustomed to it.
Finally, in her hand was a round pair of glasses.
As she hesitated for a moment, a large hand snatched the glasses away.
“…… Hah.”
“Did you enjoy your outing, Saintess?”
“Duke.”
One of the eight swords of the great Golden Empire.
The son of God, Duke Huangyeol Robelian Chen Imperium.
The only one among the eight swords with royal blood, he smiled and placed the glasses back on her face.
“Why, why. Was I a hindrance…”
Nea tried to see it through.
Although the Duke had instructed her to just watch, Nea was one of the eight swords as well.
For those eight swords, each powerful enough to topple a nation, the differences in status were meaningless.
Especially Nea, as the sole Saintess of the Empire, held power not lesser than the royal family.
─Come back.
If it weren’t for that one word, she would have poured everything out to deal with the vile ‘heretics.’
Robelian smiled faintly.
“I’m sorry. It must have meant something special to you, that Lily Elbrite.”
“… Now that evaluation has no meaning. Li, Lily is a heretic…”
“No. You shattered the Saintess’s attack, so it still holds significance.”
Lily Elbrite.
An outsider like Leo, the Sword Saint, and a sudden emergence of a strong presence.
At the same time, she seems to be connected to the ‘Saintess.’
Hearing this, I sent the Saintess Nea, who had connections with the outsiders, to investigate, but…
‘To take the ‘Gate of Great Change’ in that brief moment.’
It’s dangerous.
To be precise, a danger as the Empire’s ‘enemy.’
‘If they were allies, it would be a different story.’
But for now, they are undeniably foes.
Moreover, they are enemies with clear intent and goals.
Robelian finished his brief contemplation and immediately turned his body.
First, should I move one of the horses?
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